Support new Agtech advancements in our school
Own a unique piece of history
Keep Farrer ahead of the curve
Established in 1939 and located in Tamworth NSW, Farrer Memorial Agricultural High School has an enviable and well-deserved reputation as the sole public day and boarding agricultural selective high school for boys in Australia.
Set on 191 hectares of prime agricultural land 10 kms from Tamworth, Farrer has a strong history of providing a broad educational curriculum that is centred on agriculture as a core.
To continue with this tradition the Principal, Clint Gallagher and his Farming Manager, Andrew Eather, have identified the need to introduce new farming technologies into the classroom to ensure the farmers of tomorrow have the skills and education to thrive in what will be a very different farming environment than previously adopted. With new technologies rapidly evolving within the agtech space including drones, remote monitoring, nanotechnology, smart fencing and even agrivolatic solar arrays the school must remain at the forefront of this technological advancement.
Stage 1 - energy efficiency
The first stage in this ambitious plan is the installation of an WYNERGY Agrivoltaic Solar Farm within the school premise. This solar farm will be used to power the existing irrigation system, saving the school approximately $75,000 in annual fuel costs and provide additional shade for livestock that will co-exist amongst the solar arrays.
In addition to the cost savings this project will provide an invaluable learning experience to the students who will be able to see firsthand the science, engineering and environmental aspects of this type of agtech advancement.
Government Support
This first project has also received the support of the Department of Primary Industries via their Energy Efficiency Program. This program is a merit based support grant that considered a range of application across NSW. The DPI considered the Farrer / WYNERGY submission met the criteria of producing energy efficient technologies and announced their support for the project in December 2020.
Announcement of Energy Efficiency Grant, 11 December 2020. L-R Adam Marshall, MP; Brad Dolahenty, WYNERGY; Clint Gallagher, Principal - Farrer; Ben Wynn, WYNERGY; Kevin Anderson, MP
Your support
To complete the $400,000 project we are seeking support from the Farrar Alumni, existing and former parents of Farrer students and the wider community to see this first project come to fruition. The savings this will generate will help the school with its future capital works projects including further introduction of new agtech products into the future.
Contributions can be for any amount but as an added reward any contributor who donates over $100 will have the naming rights to one of the solar panels within the array. In total there will be around 154 panels that will be allocated on a first come first serve basis.
Spread the Word
For those unable to provide financial support we encourage you to share our campaign via social media or word of mouth to anyone you think may be interested in this venture and let's encourage the new high tech farmers of tomorrow.